He has benefited from finally putting down roots at a club and giving the coaching skills he has recognized throughout his career the time to come into their own.

He was highly regarded at Hull City, even though his five-month spell from January to May 2017 ended in relegation.

Silva made an impressive start after being appointed Watford manager, but he turned around when approached by Everton in November following the sacking of Ronald Koeman. The advances were bitterly rejected, but Watford’s form deteriorated.

Before Everton’s approach, Watford lost only four of 11 games, but then suffered defeat in eight of the next 13 games. Silva was fired in January.

Watford clearly pointed blame at Everton in its statement at the time, saying: “The trigger is this approach which, in the board’s view, has resulted in a significant deterioration in both focus and results, to the point where the long-term Development is being destroyed. “The future of Watford is at risk.”

Everton finally got their man in the summer of 2018, but dumped him 18 months later before Silva’s managerial career took him to Craven Cottage.

Silva now looks and sounds like a different man.

And that win at Chelsea was a coaching masterclass as it revealed how it was planned.

He said: “We knew Neto would push forward on the right side of Chelsea so we wanted to open up those spaces. That was our plan and we did better in the second half with Antonee Robinson and the push forward.”

“We wanted to expose that area in the way we prepared and then put more bodies in the box in the second half, which we did and scored our goals. If people think we deserve to win this game then I would agree with them.”

Fulham’s fans adore their manager, as evidenced by the wild joy at the final whistle – and the feeling is mutual.

He said: “Football is about connections. Connections between fans, players and staff mean something really big. The most important thing is the fans. It’s not about me at all.”

“Some of the speeches before the game were about the fans. It’s been a long time (not winning against the neighbor). We deserve it. We controlled the game more. We didn’t give them any chances.”

“In the second half we started making better decisions. All the good actions in the game give us confidence.”

Silva’s connection to Fulham and the club’s fans appears to be unbreakable – and he appears to be a manager who has finally found a home.